+1(514) 937-9445 or Toll-free (Canada & US) +1 (888) 947-9445

My landing Experience in Calgary

funloving

Hero Member
Jun 19, 2010
514
185
Category........
PNP
Passport Req..
08-10-2013
VISA ISSUED...
12-11-2013
LANDED..........
06-03-2014
Hello All,

I have been a silent member of this forum. I must say I have been helped by many posts for whole process. I wanted to share my landing experience with you all because I had a totally different kind of experience than most of the people here.

Just a back ground : I have been living in USA from last 9 years and have been working for last 5 years as a Mechanical Engineer in Oil/Gas Company and had applied for AINP in 2010 July, Got COPR in Feb 2014.

So, we landed in Calgary on March 6th 2014. It was a very small airport which was kinda a cozy. When we got out of the plane, I asked a old person ( volunteering for Calgary airport) about restroom and he was very rude. I was shocked with that behavior!~!! I thought that was weird reaction. Anyways, then we proceeded to the customs, the officer was also very rude...no hello...no greetings at all...which is very rude at least in US. I thought that's ok that's may be people do not wish here. Then is he asked me that I am immigrating here? I said yes. He asked my have you applied for US Green Card, I said yes, then what he said was shocking to me......... he said...."so Canada gave you immigration before US.." in a very sarcastic way.....then went on to say to himself...."why have Canada given it?" ( I heard this) ....I was now pissed.....and felt very unwelcome. I asked him what did he said....he went to saying...."nothing". He said than to go to immigration and then collect bags...so asked him where is immigration he "you can find it"...what THE FU**? What is your problem dude?
Anyways I collected my bags still didn't see immigration then went to talk to two ladies collecting customs form before exiting airport but they were making faces as if they do not want to work there and by working there they are obliging people. Anyways I found immigration.

Went in to the immigration office, the officer was ok...no special greetings ( even though we greeted him that how we do it in US). While our officer was working on our case there was this guy next to us being interviewed by other officer was GRILLED on many issues.....The officers were kinda shouting at him.....and misbehaving with him.... they asked his address in Calgary and asked phone number of his friend...to my surprise they CALLED the guy's friend in front of all the people and asked about if they are expecting this guy.....Anyways to cut long story short....they very very rude. I have been to many countries and I my opinion I found Canada to the rudest of All.
We stayed with a friend for 1 day and came back.

When I came back to US, I felt a huge difference in the people and their behavior in general. I really felt that's why US is one of the greatest country in the world.

We have kind of decided to not to move to Canada as of yet but who knows what plans does our lives have!

I am sorry if have shared some negative things there but I feel it also very important to share bad experiences on this great forum.

Please PM me if you want to know some specifics about my experience.

Thanks,

VJ
 

utopie

Hero Member
Dec 14, 2011
208
5
Calgary
Category........
Visa Office......
Ottawa
NOC Code......
4121
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
29-08-2013
Nomination.....
11-09-2013
AOR Received.
30-10-2013
IELTS Request
n/a
File Transfer...
30-10-2013
Med's Request
30-10-2013
Med's Done....
02-12-2013
Interview........
n/a
Passport Req..
24-07-2014 (decision made: April 15, 2014)
VISA ISSUED...
1-09-2014
LANDED..........
06-09-2014
I'm sorry your landing experience was that dreadful. I guess you got unlucky because I have been living in Alberta for close to ten years now and I have always (except on one occasion) been treated nicely. Actually, when I went to Seattle two years ago and went through the border, the American border officer was extremely grumpy and suspicious of me. He grilled me with questions such as "are you bringing any gift" to which I answered "no I do not know anybody there" and his reply was an angry "well i don't know whether you know somebody, I don't know what you are going to bring!". Talk about paranoid!
I was extremely anxious when crossing back to Canada and had the complete opposite experience with the immigration officer telling me "welcome home!" and I'm not even a PR yet.
They see countless immigrants everybody and they don't get paid very well. I guess that doesn't make them extremely happy from time to time. I'm sure your next visit will be much better!
 

bha

Hero Member
Nov 9, 2012
295
3
Category........
Visa Office......
CPP Ottawa
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
MAY 7, 2012
Doc's Request.
Oct 04, 2013
Nomination.....
April 17, 2012
AOR Received.
June 26 2012
File Transfer...
RPRF 17th June 2013
Med's Request
June 26 2012
Med's Done....
July 7 2012
Interview........
In Process 4th Nov 2013
Passport Req..
Jan 22, 2014
VISA ISSUED...
Feb 04 2014
LANDED..........
Feb 9 2014
utopie said:
I'm sorry your landing experience was that dreadful. I guess you got unlucky because I have been living in Alberta for close to ten years now and I have always (except on one occasion) been treated nicely. Actually, when I went to Seattle two years ago and went through the border, the American border officer was extremely grumpy and suspicious of me. He grilled me with questions such as "are you bringing any gift" to which I answered "no I do not know anybody there" and his reply was an angry "well i don't know whether you know somebody, I don't know what you are going to bring!". Talk about paranoid!
I was extremely anxious when crossing back to Canada and had the complete opposite experience with the immigration officer telling me "welcome home!" and I'm not even a PR yet.
They see countless immigrants everybody and they don't get paid very well. I guess that doesn't make them extremely happy from time to time. I'm sure your next visit will be much better!
I am in Calgary and I am agree with utopie....Last month when I went to US border for landing... I get same experience on US side which you got it at Calgary Airport, that time I fill I am so lucky because I am in Canada ... US border was so rude to me but that doesn't mean all system are like this.
Thanks utopie
 

funloving

Hero Member
Jun 19, 2010
514
185
Category........
PNP
Passport Req..
08-10-2013
VISA ISSUED...
12-11-2013
LANDED..........
06-03-2014
Thanks guys for the encouraging words. I am sure it was only 1 in thousand case. LOL....

But yes defiantly I am looking forward to make a visit to Canada since now I am a PR there :)

VJ
 

Qi

Hero Member
Feb 24, 2014
243
19
Category........
Visa Office......
ottawa
NOC Code......
1212
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
09-01-2014
Nomination.....
17-04-2014
AOR Received.
22-07-2014
IELTS Request
N/A
File Transfer...
16-01-2015
Med's Request
22-07-2014
Med's Done....
31-07-2014
Passport Req..
07-04-2015
VISA ISSUED...
09-04-2015
LANDED..........
18-04-2015
I drove my friend last year to caraway border for landing. (we live in calgary. she's from Bangladesh)
both canadian side AND US side officers were assholes. they were so rude and racist for sure.
 

sunny_heir0

Member
Jun 10, 2013
19
0
I find it funny that you decided not to immigrate to Canada based on your experience with 3-4 people !! You cant judge whole country based on these isolated experiences. And Canada in fact welcomed you by giving you PR. Anyways best of luck !!
 

funloving

Hero Member
Jun 19, 2010
514
185
Category........
PNP
Passport Req..
08-10-2013
VISA ISSUED...
12-11-2013
LANDED..........
06-03-2014
sunny_heir0,

Its not like that its just that it was too cold for us ( it may be different for different people), there are lesser opportunities career wise, houses are very damn expensive, very high tax rate etc. It is just my view when comparing with living in US. I also found people more snobbish and uptight compared to US.

Again please remember these are my personal view and I am not generalizing anything here. I wrote here to show my view of real Canada and why they are giving away the PRs so easily. Again please don't take it in other way, I know someone somewhere may be get some help reading my post.

So Chill!!

VJ
 

fenomenalb

Star Member
Jan 16, 2014
149
28
I hate to break it down to you but I don't see how this could "help" anyone. We all have had or will have an infamous/unfortunate run-in with authority figures at some point in our lives. But to use such an isolated incident to disparage a whole nation is laughable. Maybe the officer was rude, racist or whatever, it happens. Bottom line is, this is a great nation and yes, like any society ,it has its rotten seeds. To start a discourse on how the US is so much better than Canada because an officer was in a bad mood or an asshole to you is rather irrational. I am truly sorry for what you and your family had to endure upon your arrival, but at ease with that "US is better than Canada" nonsense. Better luck next time!
Amicably,
fenomenalb
funloving said:
sunny_heir0,

Its not like that its just that it was too cold for us ( it may be different for different people), there are lesser opportunities career wise, houses are very damn expensive, very high tax rate etc. It is just my view when comparing with living in US. I also found people more snobbish and uptight compared to US.

Again please remember these are my personal view and I am not generalizing anything here. I wrote here to show my view of real Canada and why they are giving away the PRs so easily. Again please don't take it in other way, I know someone somewhere may be get some help reading my post.

So Chill!!

VJ
 

utopie

Hero Member
Dec 14, 2011
208
5
Calgary
Category........
Visa Office......
Ottawa
NOC Code......
4121
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
29-08-2013
Nomination.....
11-09-2013
AOR Received.
30-10-2013
IELTS Request
n/a
File Transfer...
30-10-2013
Med's Request
30-10-2013
Med's Done....
02-12-2013
Interview........
n/a
Passport Req..
24-07-2014 (decision made: April 15, 2014)
VISA ISSUED...
1-09-2014
LANDED..........
06-09-2014
Giving away PRs easily? :eek: I got rejected twice! I am a skilled worker, I am fully French/English bilingual, I've been working/studying/living for close to 10 years in Canada and my common-law partner is a Canadian citizen. I would say I could not disagree more

funloving said:
sunny_heir0,

Its not like that its just that it was too cold for us ( it may be different for different people), there are lesser opportunities career wise, houses are very damn expensive, very high tax rate etc. It is just my view when comparing with living in US. I also found people more snobbish and uptight compared to US.

Again please remember these are my personal view and I am not generalizing anything here. I wrote here to show my view of real Canada and why they are giving away the PRs so easily. Again please don't take it in other way, I know someone somewhere may be get some help reading my post.

So Chill!!

VJ
 

funloving

Hero Member
Jun 19, 2010
514
185
Category........
PNP
Passport Req..
08-10-2013
VISA ISSUED...
12-11-2013
LANDED..........
06-03-2014
fenomenalb said:
I hate to break it down to you but I don't see how this could "help" anyone. We all have had or will have an infamous/unfortunate run-in with authority figures at some point in our lives. But to use such an isolated incident to disparage a whole nation is laughable. Maybe the officer was rude, racist or whatever, it happens. Bottom line is, this is a great nation and yes, like any society ,it has its rotten seeds. To start a discourse on how the US is so much better than Canada because an officer was in a bad mood or an asshole to you is rather irrational. I am truly sorry for what you and your family had to endure upon your arrival, but at ease with that "US is better than Canada" nonsense. Better luck next time!
Amicably,
fenomenalb
My Friend fenomenalb, if you please read my post I have CLEARLY said that these are MY VIEWS Only. The reason I said someone might get help from this post is because you always read about landing experiences as being very very good and welcoming (which may be true) but there are cases like me and few others who did landing at the same time as I did, so people coming here should know that. If you read my post you will find that I had ignored many things happened during my visit to Calgary but many places I found this type of behavior that's why I shared my story. I also know that I cannot judge a country with a few people but yelling at new immigrants (read my post), derogatory comments by customs officers, my chat with an Indian taxi driver (he lived in Calgary from last 40 years, he has seen Calgary's population grow from 100,000 to 2 million), long chats with few of my friends living in Calgary, and personal feeling and observation on many things have made me write this.

I know many people coming to Canada are not from developed countries and probably have less command on English or have never been to other developed countries. So they have never felt how it feels like to live in a developed country and they accept the rude gestures as being good. These people have dreams in their eyes and just accept the fact without having any thing to compare with. Hope you understand now.


utopie: I don't know your case but mine was very smooth so as my friend's and many people on this forum. Try to apply for US PR then you will understand why I said it. Canada is almost the easiest country in granting resident visa. In fact Canada immigration has ads in US attracting people to come and apply for PR. Visit the link.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/06/technology/wishing-you-and-your-start-up-were-here.html?_r=0


Most of the people become Canadian citizens in hopes of coming to US and becoming a PR here.

AGAIN DONT TAKE IT OTHER WAY. THESE ARE MY VIEWS.

Chill!!

VJ
 

charmevenus

Star Member
Dec 28, 2009
117
1
In Canada
Category........
Visa Office......
CPP-O
NOC Code......
6212
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
IELTS Request
Submiited with application
funloving: Counts your blessings!!!.
 

funloving

Hero Member
Jun 19, 2010
514
185
Category........
PNP
Passport Req..
08-10-2013
VISA ISSUED...
12-11-2013
LANDED..........
06-03-2014
Thank you Sir. And actually I am about to get my US green card as well. So I have an option to choose from which country I want to live. ;D

Thanks y'll.
 

dony

Full Member
Jun 4, 2012
29
6
I agree that Canada is NOT by ay means a paradise, but at least it makes me understand how easy was my life in my home country,and last Monday my stuff was stolen in the Library at City Hall in a place full of CCTV, and u know that never happened to me in my home country, I travelled just thousand of miles in order to be robbed :eek: not Kidding
 

utopie

Hero Member
Dec 14, 2011
208
5
Calgary
Category........
Visa Office......
Ottawa
NOC Code......
4121
Job Offer........
Pre-Assessed..
App. Filed.......
29-08-2013
Nomination.....
11-09-2013
AOR Received.
30-10-2013
IELTS Request
n/a
File Transfer...
30-10-2013
Med's Request
30-10-2013
Med's Done....
02-12-2013
Interview........
n/a
Passport Req..
24-07-2014 (decision made: April 15, 2014)
VISA ISSUED...
1-09-2014
LANDED..........
06-09-2014
dony said:
I agree that Canada is NOT by ay means a paradise, but at least it makes me understand how easy was my life in my home country,and last Monday my stuff was stolen in the Library at City Hall in a place full of CCTV, and u know that never happened to me in my home country, I travelled just thousand of miles in order to be robbed :eek: not Kidding
Canada is a safe country overall (much safer than the States for instance) but of course there is crime everywhere. Calgary is a safe city but the public library attracts all kind of people. You should always watch over your belongings in a library. When studying in Edmonton (during my party years), I have walked home alone at 4am without any problem. I also feel quite safe walking by myself in Calgary. There are areas I would generally avoid though.
I got my laptop stolen when in New York at the CUNY library, my phone stolen in Mexico, my car broken into in Germany. It sucks but it could have happened anywhere, including your country.
 

dony

Full Member
Jun 4, 2012
29
6
U know is this first time in my life that this happened to me :eek: , u know in my country Bolivia I left sometimes my stuff for 3 hours an It was there, I found at college like 4 times car keys and I left them a the information desk :), and Canada is just like any other country with some good things and many drawbacks.

NB.-I used to walked in my neighbourhood in Santa Cruz (Bolivia) until 6am too, nothing different than here in Calgary. :D